NAACP Opposes Right-Wing Extremist Judicial Nominee Lesley Southwick

White House Nominee to the US Court of Appeals for the 5th
Circuit has Troubling Record on Civil Rights

The Issue

As early as Thursday, June 7, the Senate Judiciary Committee is
expected to consider President Bush’s latest nominee to the 5th
Circuit Court of Appeals, Lesley Southwick. Based on Judge
Southwick’s abysmal record as a judge when considering cases
involving race, the NAACP strongly opposes this
nomination. The 5th Circuit, which covers Louisiana,
Mississippi and Texas has the highest concentration of racial and
ethnic minorities in the country.

Judge Southwick’s record as a judge on the Mississippi State
Court of Appeals clearly demonstrates that he is an inappropriate
nominee for the US Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit. In
one case Judge Southwick joined a 5-4 ruling upholding the
reinstatement of a white state social worker who had been fired for
referring to an African American co-worker as “a good ole n*****”
at an employment-related conference. That ruling was later
unanimously reversed by the Supreme Court of Mississippi. The
NAACP is further disturbed by Judge Southwick’s rulings on race
discrimination in jury selection. They demonstrate a clear
lack of support for, or even understanding of the basic the civil
rights of African Americans in the American legal system.
Dozens of cases in this area reveal a pattern in which Judge
Southwick rejected the claims that the prosecution was racially
motivated in striking African American jurors while upholding
claims that the defense struck white jurors on the basis of their
race.

While the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals has a history of
protecting and even promoting the civil rights of the racial and
ethnic minorities living within its jurisdiction, the current court
does not appear to be following this trend; indeed they appear more
interested in curbing civil rights and retarding civil
liberties. Given Southwick’s record, he appears prepared to
perpetuate this sad trend if confirmed.

Finally, given Mississippi’s long history of racial apartheid,
disenfranchisement, interposition, nullification and massive
resistance, it is unfathomable that President Bush has not
nominated a single African American to serve on the Court of
Appeals for the 5th Circuit or any of the district courts during
his tenure in office. While it certainly is the President’s
prerogative to nominate the individuals of his choice to the
federal judiciary, and while the NAACP does not advocate the
nomination of unqualified individuals simply because of the color
of his or her skin, we unequivocally reject the notion that there
are no qualified African Americans to fill this vacancy on the 5th
Circuit. Lesley Southwick’s nomination continues a stark
pattern of racial discrimination and racial exclusion in
appointments by President Bush in a state and a region that
continues to need integration.